Social Studies Deptartment Chair Selected for Prestigious Workshop

The University of Massachusetts Lowell’s Tsongas Industrial History Center announced that it has selected Nancy A. Ponzetti from Catherine McAuley High School, Portland, Maine to participate in a prestigious National Endowment for the Humanities “Landmarks of American History and Culture” teacher workshop entitled “Inventing America - Lowell and the Industrial Revolution.” Mrs. Ponzetti was selected from an applicant group of nearly 200 teachers from around the United States. This workshop is part of NEH’s “We the People” project, which promotes the teaching, study, and understanding of American history and culture through the exploration of significant events and themes in American history.

Mrs. Ponzetti will join more than forty other teachers from thirty-two different states in an intensive, week-long workshop at Lowell National Historical Park and the Tsongas Industrial History Center in Lowell, Massachusetts. Through scholarly presentations and on-site investigations of the canals, mills, and worker housing in America’s first large-scale planned industrial city, as well as through field studies of Old Sturbridge Village, Walden Pond, and Concord, MA museums, workshop participants will explore the far-reaching economic and social changes brought about by industrialization. Teachers will use primary sources provided throughout the workshop to develop lesson plans that can be incorporated into their school’s curriculum. Participants will receive a stipend to cover housing and meals, with travel assistance available on a case-by-case basis.

“I am very pleased to be selected to participate in this national workshop. It will enable me to identify teaching materials I can use with my students to engage them in understanding how the Industrial Revolution laid the foundation for the United States to become a powerful nation and to better understand today’s global textile economy as well”.

Congratulations Mrs. Ponzetti!